The Courage to Go
-- Voices of Courage Playlist -- Track 1
On a recent visit to the Washington National Cathedral, I was reminded of the courageous sermon preached by the Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, on the occasion of the Inaugural Prayer Service, Jan. 21, 2025. She serves as a model of courage, speaking truth to power, as the newly inaugurated president sat just feet away from her in the front row. (see my essay, "Stepping Up," linked HERE. The full text of her sermon and a YouTube video of her presentation are included in that essay.) I have since read Budde's book, How We Learn to be Brave (2023, Avery Press), and found it quite inspirational.
In response to my essay, I received a note from a friend and colleague in Ann Arbor, psychologist Kristine Freeark. Kris said she had thought about making a Voices of Courage playlist for herself, just as a reminder of the brave work that people all over the country are undertaking in the face of the ruinous changes being made by the current regime locally, nationally, and internationally.
That conversation led to others, which led to this post -- the first contribution to our "Voices of Courage Playlist" on Substack. We use the word "playlist" broadly -- it's not literally on Spotify or YouTube, but it will be a collection of essays, videos, and other media lifting up exemplars of courage. These will be pieces that you can easily revisit or forward to others, as needed for renewed inspiration. We will strive to include video or audio clips of the person being featured, whenever possible. (At the end of this post, we include a very brief poll to assess your interest in seeing this evolve as a separate Substack. Please respond with your feedback!)
Courage involves facing challenges and doing what's right, even in the face of difficulty, fear, danger, or intimidation. The word derives from the Latin, “cor,” which in English means "heart." or our center of being.
The people and groups we will be profiling in this series have displayed courage in their actions. We share these for several reasons. As Budde noted, "Hearing another person's courageous journey, we can't help but consider our own" (Budde, 2023, p. 1). But it doesn't stop there. Robert Reich (and many others) have been writing about how courage is contagious. As he noted HERE on 4-20-25, every person, politician, and institution who stands up to the Trump regime’s lawlessness and cruelty summons others to do the same.
Budde's book highlights a number of ways in which courage can be expressed, one of which is deciding to go. It's as if that still, small voice inside says, "Enough is enough! I'm going!"
Track 1 of the Voices of Courage Playlist profiles Dr. Kevin Hall, a former scientist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), who made that difficult decision to go. He took early retirement rather than submit to politically-based censorship of his work. It was courageous to resign such an important position as a matter of conscience, but doubly courageous to discuss this in the media so that we in the broader public could see what is happening to important research such as his.
Hall’s research has focused on ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) - foods that include artificial, manufactured ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup, additives (like colorings or emulsifiers), and other things you wouldn't typically use in your home kitchen. UPFs include things like chips, candies, hot dogs, lunch meats, boxed mac and cheese, packaged breads, chicken nuggets, breakfast cereals, and flavored yogurts.
Associations have been found between UPF intake and conditions such as heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, gastrointestinal diseases, and earlier death. Sadly, UPFs "account for 67 percent of the calories consumed by children and teenagers in the United States." This is important research that can benefit all of us. For more information about UPFs, a summary is linked HERE.
What did Hall do that was so courageous? He was unwilling to submit to censorship of his research. In February 2025, NIH officials told him that he could not be listed as an author on a scientific review of UPFs that included language about "health equity" -- mentioning that some Americans do not have ready access to healthy food. Hall was given the choice of changing the conclusions of the paper or removing his name as an author. He chose to remove his name rather than alter findings to facilitate a political agenda. Then, just weeks later, he and colleagues published a paper about the addictive nature of UPFs that did not precisely fit with the narrative that the HHS secretary (RFK, Jr.) has been publicizing. It did not deny the possibility that UPFs have addictive properties -- but their research did not support the current thinking about exactly how that might work in the body. Rather than allow his conclusions to be altered, he took the principled, courageous step to leave his “dream job” at NIH rather than submit to censorship and subvert the freedom of inquiry that is the centerpiece of science.
Watch his interview with CNN host Jake Tapper. Click HERE: (5:35)
For a more detailed interview with Dr. Hall about diet and UPFs, see this video ("What Should We Eat") from Eric Topol's "Ground Truths" 11-30-2024 (47:47)
Kevin Hall: What Should We Eat?
HERE is a link to the NYT article describing his departure, and HERE is his own announcement of his departure, made on X, 4-16-2025.
Budde's assertion that "hearing another person's courageous journey, we can't help but consider our own," certainly resonates with me (HG). I have been an active developmental psychology researcher for 50 years, and have never been asked by any funder or any publication outlet to change my findings or conclusions to meet their agenda. Universities as well as scientific professional organizations have strict codes of ethics that prohibit research fraud, and scientific progress only moves forward when there can be open inquiry and transparency in publication and dissemination of findings.
As a clinician/researcher I (KF) have worked my whole career to help clients (particularly children and families) move toward health and healing by educating and motivating them. In turn, I have also used their insights and lived experience to inform my research and my assessment of others’ findings. Truthful and complex analyses are required if our nation is to thrive, individually and collectively.
As Reich mentioned, courage is contagious -- and more and more stories are popping up about people in many walks of life who are demonstrating courage in the face of intimidation - often with significant personal and/or professional consequences. We will be talking about more of them in future posts. If you have people or organizations you think we should profile, feel free to direct message through Substack chat, or make your mentions in the comments below.
Which brings us to a closing question. We (Hal and Kris) are considering making the Voices of Courage Playlist a separate Substack, and we seek your honest opinion. If we were to do that, is it something you would read. subscribe to (assuming no fees and no ads), and recommend to others? Please respond to our very brief poll here and let us know your thoughts. Feel free to add more detailed thoughts in the comments below. If you enjoyed this first post, please like, add comments, and share with your friends! Until next time.
Great idea! I would definitely support such an effort.
Yes! Let us stay united, with the courage of our convictions. Peace!